Clockwise Reversal
by Amilya Eclair Farron
Summary: [Hiatus] Trinity Campbell knew the rules of being a Hunter until one night leads her making a deal with a Crossroad Demon. Drunken stupor or not, she never expected for what she asked for to be, unconscious, on the floor of her motel room. : Full Summary Inside :
1. Prologue

_Edit_—June 12, 2011: Originally this was a _Harry Potter/Supernatural _crossover but, as I was working on chapter one, my plot bunnies suddenly changed their mind and wanted it to change from _Harry Potter_ to _X-Men_ (and I was a little surprised with how many people voted for it to change to _X-Men_). But yes, as you can see, I've changed this from that to this instead. I've kept the prologue the same because, truthfully, I liked how I wrote this little snippet; I did make minor changes since there're no spells involved.

To those who read the original: I do apologize for having to change it. Honestly I hadn't anticipated for my plot bunnies to change their minds. And, in case you wanted to know which _H.P. _character had been chosen it was Fred Weasley. Again, I do apologize for changing it to _X-Men_ (especially to those who wanted it to remain _Harry Potter/Supernatural_). But who knows? Perhaps you'll still enjoy it…? If not, I want to thank you for having taken the time to support this plot idea and for having the patience to see what was next.

Full Summary: Trinity Campbell knows the important rules of being a Hunter because, after all, she's a _Campbell_ and had been taught by her infamous cousins, the Winchester brothers. Or, that's what was assumed. Until one night in a drunken stupor leads her to making a deal; a deal with a Crossroad Demon. Everything is turned upside down when she discovers what type of deal she made: to give a character a chance at redemption. However, in her drunken stupor or not, she never expected to find that character to be lying _on the floor of her motel room_. Throw in the fact that she has to reunite with her cousins to get Sam's soul back and all types of other problems it's guaranteed to be more than the usual Winchester family ride…

Disclaimer: I do not own _X-Men_ nor do I have ownership of _Supernatural_; the only ownership I have over is my OC (I swear I would have used a character from _Supernatural_, like Jo. The problem with that is: Jo's dead. She died in season five, episode "_Abandon All Hope_" and, though I know I could bring her back, I'm tying this AU in with season six) and the plot of the story. Again, I do not have any type of ownership over _Supernatural _or _X-Men_. Any similarities of physical descriptions or names to any real person, may it be living or dead, is purely coincidental. Thank you.

* * *

Clockwise Reversal  
_Prologue_

* * *

_October 29, 2011 — Present Day_

Have you ever been honored with the privilege of explaining to your family why you never kept in contact with them when, in truth, it was actually mutual if given some thought about it?

And you figured that one twisted white lie would help ease it, even if they were still angry with the answer?

… Unless, say, some idiot person decided to summon some monster who had the ability to make people tell the truth, at a price, known as some crazy called Veritas?

And then you discover that you do end up spilling the beans, as the saying goes, to the person that—not only happened to have invoke the curse of Veritas—but questioned the topic once again to see whether or not what you had originally told them was the truth or not?

It was at times like these that Trinity Campbell wished she had been born in a normal (and well functioning) family.

Because now it was time to face the music and tell her overprotective cousin _everything_.

"Dean," Trinity began and paused, trying to fight the urge of blurting everything out. "I made a deal."

"'A deal'," He repeated the words and his eyes flicked from her to the young man, seated on the newly made bed, who had been her companion since, what she claimed, was for five months, "with him?"

"No—well, not quite. It does involve him, though…" This time it was her turn for her eyes to dart between the two. The words that held the key was tightly wedged in her throat and made her feel ill by the sheer memories from that night. In some ways, she found herself wishing that Sam were here in the room to help ease Dean's anger, if only by a slim. Yet she rather was grateful that he wasn't there; she had noticed there was a small change in the man's demeanor. If Dean hadn't told her what he recalled since the night of the attack, she may not have given it much input. She struggled to spit out her next sentence, "And, you can't scold me for it either because you did the same even if you weren't drunk—"

"Damn it, Trinity! What did you _do?_"

"I made a deal with a Crossroad Demon!"

The stunning silence exploded throughout the room and the two found themselves suddenly still. She shifted from one foot to the other.

It took her cousin awhile to compose himself from the outburst. He blinked at her, blinked again and once more, before staring at her as if he had never known her for the past, almost, eight years. For her, cheeks burned with embarrassment and maybe even a little in shame. But before she could backtrack, tell him that it wasn't as bad as it seemed and that it was for a good cause, he ended up beating her to it.

"I've told you countless of times to never, _ever_ make any type of pacts with demons!"

The word 'hypocrite', was on the tip of her tongue yet Trinity reframed letting it loose. Instead she said softly, "I know, _I know_. But he—"

Something crossed her cousin's face that made her stop short but was gone before she could decipher the meaning. She prayed to God that Dean wouldn't ask anything more, that he'd settle for this answer and never mention it again. Not until they fixed everything.

But it was never that simple.

Nothing ever was 'simple'.

For their family, that was.

And perhaps for other families that had taken to the business of being a _Hunter_.

But, for them it was extremely the opposite of simple. Ever since the Yellow-Eye Demon had played his major part in the Winchester/Campbell's lives. Ever since it all began to unravel from there, it was made clear that the word 'simple' could not and would not fit in their family name. Besides, Dean Winchester was never easily satisfied with these types of given answers and would use this blasted curse to his advantage.

Trinity swallowed as she tried to keep her stomach down.

There was no chance of avoiding this. It was inevitable, always had been.

It was time to come clean.


	2. He's a Fictional Character

Clockwise Reversal  
_He's a Fictional Character_

* * *

_August 11, 2010 — Motel Room 214_

Hangovers were not considered the best company to wake up with.

That and headaches, especially if the headache turned out to be a migraine.

Trinity lazily cracked an eye open, vision mildly disoriented, to see what the neon colors of the clock read. It was past 11:30 AM and, quite honestly, she felt as if it were not but an hour ago that her head had hit the softness of the pillow. It was a wonder how her cousins were able to rise from the depths of the dead after staying up late from drinking.

Eyes snapped opened as that unwanted sensation of vomiting rose and she hurled herself out of bed, blindly stumbling to the bathroom, trying not to gag as something lurched up her throat.

Once her stomach was empty, the dry heaves passed, she moved to the sink and splashed cool water on her face. Behind closed eyelids she saw flashes of moments with missing pieces that made it hard for her hangover brain to focus on the time of the event. She squeezed her eyes shut, silently commanding the memories away, before the thought that a shower may be what she needed to help her muscles relax. The ever present knowledge that her cousins were no longer around made it somewhat hard for her to find reassurance. Which was ridiculous as her mother would have told her if she were still around.

Then again, she knew, her mother would have found this entire _thing_ ridiculous.

… Or had her father told her the family history? That the Campbell family, instead of deer and quails, went on the hunt for monsters to keep the innocent safe. Did she ever know the deep, dark secret?

A snort, "Probably not…"

It was unclear if that was the hangover talking or her.

Figuring that a nice, warm shower would help loosen her hangover, Trinity hurriedly went to task. At 1:00 she was supposed to checkout of the room and be back on the road to find another unholy creature to stop its reign of terror on its victims. That itself still felt strange, foreign, to her; Sam and Dean had always had her back, as she did for theirs, but knowing that she was fully on her own…

What little conscious that wasn't infected with the leftover alcohol told her to get over it and to get a grip. After all, what had gone through her head? She couldn't believe that she had even thought that they would have stuck together, thick and thin, for however long it was until something either got them all or the end of the world happened.

"That turned out real well, though, didn't it?" She asked sarcastically to herself knowing full well the answer. Besides, every day since discovering this job, she witnessed herself how having a 'normal life' never worked out once being in the Hunters business. Even having a long lifespan didn't seem guaranteed—it was only the wise (and lucky) ones that managed to live as long as they have or had. And if they weren't cursed like her family seemed to be.

"_Seriously, how fucked up is our family?" She asked Castiel as they sat around, Sam and Dean going over what their next move would be. In return he gave her that face when he didn't understand laced with that confused tone, "I'm sorry?"_

For a millisecond she thought about him before dismissing all thoughts. Cas _did_ have the uncanny ability to suddenly appear when called, or even with a simple little thought that involved him, and she rather not have him suddenly there—in the bathroom—believing to have been called while she was drying herself off. That there would be her killer: embarrassment.

But, even after thinking about how the Angel was doing, her mind wandered to two others: Gabriel and Anna.

If she had been honest she would have made it clear that she preferred to have the one they thought was originally a Trickster instead of Anna. That included _before_ Anna had gotten her grace back. Which, to most, wouldn't have made a whole lot of sense; Gabriel had put her cousins through a series of television roles to get his point across while Anna (at first) had the intention to help them all along. He even put Sam and her through Groundhog Day where the same exact events occurred. Except when it came to Dean's death scenes, where it constantly changed over and over again.

"_Relax, Trins, I'm here to help you. And those two cousins of yours, even though it would be easier if they said yes." He said the last bit under his breath before shoving her into a vacant room and locking the door shut. She couldn't help but ask, "I thought that Cas was our, erm, Guardian Angel so…"_

_Gabriel fixed her with his stare, "Yeah, well, we both figured it was better if I was the one that came in to help you three. Since, oh you know, I'm known as Loki the Trickster to them and not the Archangel Gabriel. So I'd really appreciate it if you addressed me as you had _before_ finding out my true identity."_

Trinity sighed after finishing putting her hair in a ponytail, the memory disbursing and mind falling back into peace. It was odd that out of everyone they had lost during this war was that she missed him the most. Of course, after Sam, that was. Maybe it was the hangover that was talking, again. Yeah. That had to be it.

With one last glance at the mirror to make sure her shirt wasn't too wrinkled and that she had thrown her toothbrush and other material items back into the small travel bag she exited the bathroom, flicking the switch, and sliding open the closet to retrieve her suitcase. Once she hauled it up on top of the mattress she unzipped the right side pocket and stuffed the smaller case into it before zipping it shut. She examined the luggage with narrowed eyes for a few seconds noticing how, if it were a balloon, it would pop with the lightest poke from a needle.

_Flick._

She pinched the bridge of her nose and inhaled.

_Clink._

And exhaled, trying to ignore the noise in hopes to keep headache and hangover from spiking.

_Flick._ _Clink._

"Someone had a little too much to drink, huh." It wasn't a question.

_Flick._

Oh, that's right.

She wasn't exactly on her own, anymore, per say. Not for a little over a week now… all because of that drunken stupor that she had committed. How many times had she seen, front row seat, the consequences in making deals with demons—specifically, with Crossroad Demons? Dean, the one inside her head, had exploded exactly the same way that the real Dean would have when finding out about her stupid mistake.

_Clink._

"Can you knock it off? That's making it worse."

_Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink._

She swore he was doing it on purpose, silently.

"John!"

It still tasted weird on her tongue to say his name for, namely, two reasons. The first because her cousins' dad, her _uncle_, name was John. And the second reason was because…

_Flick._

His eyes took on a darker shade, "I told you that the name's _Pyro._"

… he's a fictional character.

* * *

So, before you ask, yes; I know that the chapter's short. But I felt this was a good place to end it. Next chapter will be longer, promise. ;)  
And heads up! Feel free to request which episode(s) you want to see Pyro and Trinity in! I've already dotted down a few that I know I want the two to be involved in but there's a little over half that I won't be doing, in case you were wondering...

Now, to my wonderful reviewers:

candinaru, WoW, Pluto, & fiona: If by any chance that you're reading this I simply want to say thank you all for reviewing and that, again, I'm sorry for having changed this from _Harry Potter_ to _X-Men_.

CSF: Thank you so much for the review! LOL, that's the same as me and the reason that my plot bunnies even thought about changing it to _X-Men_ was because I was preparing myself for the _First Class_ movie. That and I've become recently obsessed over Pyro. And look, there he is! Now I just need to make sure that I keep him in character as close as possible…


	3. the Campbell Luck

Clockwise Reversal  
_the Campbell Luck_

* * *

_Flick._

"Excuse me, this is a nonsmoking area."

_Clink._

"Yeah, and?"

Trinity shifted uncomfortably in her seat and glanced from the waitress to her companion that was seated across from her. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened and she knew that it wasn't going to be the last either.

Not unless she took that damn lighter away from him.

_Yeah. Fat chance of that happening,_ she thought as she continued to watch the interaction between the two.

_Flick._

"And you need to put your lighter away."

_Clink._

In some ways she was relieved that he had closed his Zippo but in another it simply made her all the more nervous. The air around them seem to thicken, making it hard to breath, as he stared back at the waitress, silently daring her to tell him to put his precious lighter away one more time…

"Look, it's a tic of his." John's attention snapped to her but she ignored his gaze. Previous times she had tried to coax him into slipping the wretched thing into his pocket. But seeing as how that never worked, and they'd always leave the restaurant with even hungrier stomachs, she figured she may as well try a different tact. "He doesn't even smoke so maybe you could make this a onetime exception?"

The woman's eyes softened somewhat. For a split second it had her thinking that maybe it would work.

"Seriously, you can't put your lighter away for twenty, maybe thirty minutes tops?" Trinity asked as they piled into the car, but not before John gave a quick roll of the eyes.

"I think I saw a Carl's Jr. a few blocks back." He shrugged and started to flick his lighter open before quickly shutting it.

Trinity deadpanned. "Yeah, because it's not like we've eaten there for the past few days."

Pyro rolled his eyes. "I don't see what your issue is. You get the food faster there than you do sitting around inside of a restaurant, watching as your waiter delivers the food to the people that came in _after_ you, and then expects you to give him a twenty dollar tip."

This made her wonder if he had gone through this bad experience before. Instead, she twisted around in her seat to grab the newspaper she had tossed in the back earlier and started searching through it. It hadn't been exactly easy explaining to him the importance of her job and the fact that demons and ghosts, shapeshifters and werewolves, vampires and ghouls, and so many other supernatural beings did, in fact, exist. But he had surprised her by handling the truth differently compared to those few that her cousins had told.

Then again, he did come from a world filled with mutants; he was one himself. So, perhaps it really shouldn't have shocked her as it had.

_Flick._

_Clink._

_Flick._

_Clink._

_Flick._

_Clink._

"This one seems worth checking out."

_Flick._

"… Whatever."

Of course, just because his reaction to the news that supernatural beings existed in this—her—world didn't mean that he was too enthusiastic about hunting them. He didn't want to help anyone because he "was not some hero" as he had put it when she asked. Really, if she was going to make a deal to give someone a chance to redeem themselves, why did it have to be him—a Marvel character?

_Clink._

_Flick._

"Well?"

She looked at him.

"Are we going or not?" He muttered as the lid of the Zippo fell over the flame with a sharp _clink_.

"Yeah," She tossed the folded newspaper back where she retrieved it from and started the engine, "yeah, we're going."

* * *

"Well, I've figured it out."

He sent her a sharp glare, silently ordering her to shut up, before turning back to the show he was watching.

"It's a wendigo."

"Great," His tone was heavy with sarcasm, "have fun."

"…"

How was she going to go about this? It was already a miracle that he hadn't tried to fry her yet.

"John—Pyro," She quickly corrected herself, noting the way he flicked his precious Zippo open. "Could you please—?"

"_No_."

Her attention focused itself on the flame that grew a tad brighter. This was going to be more of a challenge than she wanted.

"…"

"…"

Temporarily, she thought about summoning Castiel in hopes he'd find a way to make him more cooperative. But that idea left as quickly as it had came. John, without a doubt, would not be happy if that were to happen. And, who knew? Castiel probably was too busy with his duties to really pay her any mind. That, or Bobby might have made contact with him already and ask him to bring her back.

But if that was the case, wouldn't she have been brought in long ago?

A few minutes had passed and somewhere between that time John had snuffed out the flame.

"But—"

"I said _no_."

_Flick._

"…"

There really was no point in trying.

Why did she bother to see if it would?

"Fine, you win."

_Clink._

"If I'm not approximately back in three or four days then that means the wendigo got me." She stood, taking the laptop with her, and walked over to the bed. "And if I do make it out alive, then be ready to hit the road as soon as you hear two honks."

John turned to look at her, eyebrow raised in suspicion. "… Why?"

"With the Campbell luck," She zipped up her suitcase, "someone will place me at the time of the fire. And I really don't feel like being arrested this week."

* * *

Her mind was in a tizzy at how sudden everything had happened. False peace was given to her as she kept on hiking further into the dense of the trees and thick brush. She remembered, going by the map, she was close before the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. The air in her lungs was knocked out of her as something slammed into her hard and sent her sprawling to the ground. And then…

… She felt the scorching heat at her back and the inhuman cry ring in her ears.

Quickly, she clambered to her feet and spun around. The intensity of the heat was fading, as was the flames it came from, allowing her to get a clear view of—_John?_

A few feet away, from where the creature had been seconds ago, stood John with one arm outstretched.

With his Zippo in that same hand.

Trinity blinked and… blinked again.

"… What are you doing here?"

Really, she couldn't say a simple "thank you" first?

_Clink._

He rolled his eyes. "What do you think?"

What was she supposed to think? He was the one who said no when she tried asking for his help and yet, there he was. It wasn't as if he had a change of heart. Did he?

"You think you're the only one who has problems when it comes to authorities?"

"…"

Oh. Now it made sense.

Was it her or had this become awkward… er?

Neither said anything more as they retreated down the makeshift path that they had come. It wasn't until the area was fading from the rear-view mirror that Trinity broke the silence.

"Thank you, you know, for—"

_Flick._

"Yeah, whatever…"

_Clink._

She thought about asking him if this meant he changed his mind. But knowing her luck it was only going to be a onetime thing.

How wrong she was.

* * *

(Let me first say that I'm terribly sorry for how long it's taken me to update! Real Life has gotten in the way and continues to do so...)

Since _Anonymous_ had asked what episodes that Pyro and Trinity will be involved in, here's the list (so far):  
_6.4: Weekend at Bobby's _or _6.5: Live Free or TwiHard  
6.6: You Can't Handle the Truth  
6.15: The French Mistake  
6.17: My Heart Will Go On  
6.18: Frontierland  
6.22: The Man Who Knew Too Much_

Remember, you're always welcome to make a request if you don't see your favorite episode from this season.

CSF: Thanks again for the review! And thank you for helping me with the 'How would John react to this…?' moment; I think I'm getting a better sense of his personality, haha. XD

KoK: Thanks again for reviewing! LOL, I have to agree with you there. How much _had_ Trinity had to drink? As for Pyro he was in _X2: X-Men United_ & _X-Men: the Last Stand_. =)

WoW: Thank you; I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying it so far (and that you're not too upset with it changing to _X-Men_). Maybe, as we get deeper into the story, you'll come to like John just as much as _H.P._? You never know. :)

_Anonymous_: Glad to hear that you're enjoying it so far. If there's an episode not listed that you want to see the two in then don't hesitate to tell me! :)

Musicunderground: Thanks very much for the review! Haha, I'm trying my best to keep Trinity from becoming such a person and even took one of the many Mary-Sues tests out there on the Internet; so far, from what the test told me, is that she's a non-Sue and I'm trying to make sure it stays that way. =)

VeelaSophia: Thanks! Sorry that I haven't really described Trinity's looks yet… haha, I just noticed that. I tried to incorporate it into this chapter before posting but it didn't turn out how I would have liked. ^ ^; But I'll be sure to have those details in the next chapter.


	4. With a Sharp Clink

Clockwise Reversal  
_With a Sharp Clink_

* * *

"You humans really are pathetic."

This is the _fifth_ time that John's come to her rescue and she isn't exactly sure what she should say. Part of her wants to question where this side of him came from or if he's an imposter ask him what he did to the real John Allerdyce. She weighs the option of testing to see if this is a shapeshifter, but dismisses that idea a second later. After all, she's never run into one that's able to manipulate fire like he can (or any element for that matter).

"And weak," He adds as an afterthought.

… Maybe it was because of the deal she made? She may not remember everything from that night, but there are pieces there that she does recall. And she knows that the deal was for the person (in this case the person being John) to redeem himself for the wrongs he's done. Did that mean he was _supposed_ to help people? But… that didn't add up right. If that was the case then he would've been forced to help her at the very beginning instead of turning his nose up at the mere thought of aiding others.

"This is why we _homo superiors_ are better."

She refrains herself from rolling her eyes. It's not like she couldn't handle the situation herself. Sure, she was having some trouble in getting the cheap plastic lighter to work, but it wasn't as if the situation was _that_ bad.

…

OK, so maybe it was starting to get a little worrisome near the end there.

_Clink_.

"Are you still alive down there?" He asks but doesn't sound like he cares if she is or not.

It's not until then that she realizes she's still lying on her back from where she fell. If she were on her stomach the whole situation would be almost a perfect replay of the woods. "Yeah, I'm fine." She sits up and runs her fingers through her auburn hair that came loose from the messy bun she put it in earlier. It makes her think about getting a haircut until she comes to the conclusion that it isn't that long. Perhaps once the ends reach her hips she'll get one.

Now standing, she brushes the dirt from her jeans before reaching down and picking up the shovel. The sunrise won't be for another two hours and already she's not looking forward to filling up the grave that took her hours to dig up. Her eyes darted to where John stood and she thinks about politely asking him if he'd do it. But he _did_ just save her for the fifth time in little over two months and she had to push the temptation away from her mind.

"Thanks again, Pyro." She's gotten used to calling him by his alias, but there are still times where she almost calls him by his actual name.

And his response to that hasn't changed since the first time he saved her.

_Flick_.

"Yeah, whatever…"

_Clink_.

Silence washes over the two which doesn't feel awkward like it once had. Only this time she's going to break the usual routine and asks him why.

"You rather I didn't?"

That… wasn't the response she was looking for. But she does note that he hasn't gotten angry at her like he would have like at the beginning. Did that mean he was having a change of heart? … That was highly doubtful at this point. If only he hadn't answered her question with a question. But did she dare push the topic further?

"No." She answers truthfully. "But you can't blame me for being curious is all."

He raises an eyebrow at her and his Zippo flicks open briefly before the lid comes down on the flame to extinguish it.

"It just has me wondering if you've had a change of heart." Trinity soon finds herself regretting saying the words as soon as they come out of her mouth.

His face becomes stony and his eyes turn to that darker shade.

_Flick_.

Her body tenses itself as if to brace for the scorching heat that'll be sent her way.

But after a few seconds Pyro only gives her a sneer and the lid of his Zippo falls back with a sharp _clink_. Not long after, she blinks after his retreating form.

There's a moment where she feels like slapping herself.

Why, in her drunken state, had she asked for him again?

Finally, she lets out a sigh and comes to the conclusion that she may (and most likely will) never know.

So instead she settles for vowing to never, ever get that drunk again.

* * *

I was thinking about re-vamping the third chapter completely but decided against it. After re-reading it I am partly satisfied with how it turned out. But anyway, my plot bunnies _finally_ decided on when exactly John was pulled out from _X-Men_. Its post-_X2: X-Men United_/pre-_X-Men: the Last Stand_. Therefore John's hair hasn't been dyed blond (yet) and his personality is still mainly leftover from the second movie. Why did my plot bunnies settle on this? Well… you'll just have to wait and see; although something tells me that you, Crime Scene Fairy, will be able to figure it out. ;)

Oh yes! And before I forget to ask, has anyone read _Supernatural: Bobby Singer's Guide to Hunting_ by David Reed? I read it a few months back and part of me is considering incorporating it in the story but I'm not a hundred percent sure. What do you guys think?

sara winchester: Thank you for the review. :)

WoW: I'm glad to hear it. And who knows? Maybe you'll become an _X-Men_ fan sometime in the (perhaps near) future…? =)

summer rain: Thank you very much for the review; I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying this story so far. And thank you for the advice (that was one of the reasons I thought about re-vamping the last chapter).


	5. A Compromise

Clockwise Reversal  
_A Compromise_

* * *

One would have thought that, after saving her five times, he'd come around and assist her on hunts.

Unfortunately, though, that wasn't the case.

After the exchange in the graveyard it was clear to her that he was never again going to watch her back. Somehow, she should have known that this would come back to bite her in the ass. Why had she decided on breaking their normal – if they could call it that – routine? Oh right. It was because of her stupid, idiotic curiosity wanting to know why.

The routine _before_ he had saved her from the wendigo fell back into place. And the small conversations that they would have sometimes became even smaller.

Curiosity was a real bitch.

And she hated it.

Why hadn't common sense stopped her?

… Oh right. More than likely, it died when she got drunk off her ass and made that deal. That's why common sense hadn't stopped her because it had already died before the conversation in the cemetery took place. _Go figure._

However, about two weeks later, he started to come back around.

Although, the (only) reason for it was because the ghoul she was tracking down decided to go after him. But so what? He was _actually_ helping her again albeit reluctantly. But once the situation had been handled it was clear that John wasn't going to help unless whatever – demon, shapeshifter, ghost, witch, werewolf, vampire, you name it – she went after decided to go after him, too.

And she knew that if she wanted this – whatever "_this_" (partnership, maybe?) was – to work than she needed to find some way to get him to meet her halfway there. And what better way than making some kind of deal?

Her face fell at the word "deal". Wasn't how this whole disaster started?

_Focus, Trinity; you need to make a compromise with him_.

_Oh yippy_, She thought with fake enthusiasm. Now her conscious decided to use the voice of _Gabriel?_ Who was next – Sam? But then again… wouldn't it be Sam's voice instead of Gabriel's at the moment? It would've made more sense to her if it was. Perhaps it was only because she missed his sense of humor?

_Now you're just stalling, Kiddo._

Yeah, she was. So what? It wasn't as if it were some kind of crime she was committing.

_C'mon, Trins, you _need_ to do it. And it's better to do it now than never. … Don't even think about doing "never", Trins._

That was too bad.

"Pyro, can we talk for a second or two?"

_Flick_.

"…"

_Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flink. Clink._

She fought back the urge to try and grab the damn thing from him. Besides, she knew she wouldn't be able to anyway so there wasn't any point in trying.

_Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink._

"… Well?"

He didn't even bother looking at her. "So talk."

_Flick_.

It would have made her feel a little more comfortable if he put his Zippo away for the duration of this conversation they were about to have, but there wasn't much she could do about it. Quickly, she said a silent prayer before broaching the subject. "Look. I know this can't be easy for you," She ignored the glare he sent her way as if saying "no duh" and continued, "and I'm sorry about what happened back at the cemetery."

"Is that all?"

"Unfortunately no, that's not all."

_Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick._

"I know you've made it clear that you don't want to be some kind of hero."

_Clink_.

"But at the same time, you're restricted from using your gift." She hoped that term was agreeable with him and, to help indicate her meaning, motioned to the lighter in his hands; he didn't react. Maybe he was curious as to where she was going with this? "I mean, here there are no… _homo superiors_," She made sure to use the same term he used for himself and others like him. "And because of that you're restricted on when and where you can use your ability."

_Flick_.

Pyro sneered at her, "_I know_."

Her eyes studied the way the flame flickered back and forth. She really was playing with fire now, wasn't she? "That's why I've come up with a compromise."

"… A compromise," He repeated.

What, did she stutter?

_Relax, Trins._ The voice inside her head – that was _still_ using Gabriel's voice – said. _It's not like he went ahead and shot the idea down. In fact, he seems pretty intrigued by it._

That was true: Pyro _did_ appear interested. And, on top of that, he hadn't tried frying her… yet.

"… What kind of compromise are we talking about?"

_Clink_.

"The kind where I'll… where you," Trinity made sure to backtrack when she noticed the Zippo open with a swift _flick_ and the flame came back to life, "can use your gift. But that means you have to help me out with the hunts, especially with ones that require the use of fire." It was easy to tell that Pyro wasn't thrilled by the idea. "It'll only be until we find a way for you to get back to your world. And besides… who knows how long it'll be before that happens."

_Clink._

_Flick._

_Clink._

_Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink. Flick. Clink._

"And if someone _normal_ is around?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

She gave a one shoulder shrug, "If they've already witnessed, or about to witness, the supernatural then I don't really see a problem with it. I mean, it's not like we haven't had some cases where someone didn't end up seeing ghosts and demons and such."

His eyebrow went an inch or two higher at the word, "We?"

"… Other hunters I've worked with in the past with." It wasn't as if she were lying, but she really hoped he wouldn't press the topic further. His dark eyes seemed to be studying her as she tried not to fidget. What? Did he want to know who these others were? _Damn it. Could you _please_ stop staring at me as if I'm hiding something?_ The look he had was one similar to Dean's whenever he thought she was hiding something. But, seriously? What would she hide from him? It's not like she was secretly plotting something with this compromise so what was the big deal?

_If you think about it, you kind of are. I mean, it may not be a real trick you're playing on him, but still. You _are_ trying to get him to help you out on hunts._

… Was there a chance she was starting to develop some kind of multiple personality disorder or something? Or was her conscious just really that screwed up?

After awhile John gave a "hmm" sound before going back to opening and shutting the lid of his lighter.

"So?"

"What?"

She almost decided on giving up until she noticed the smirk playing at the corner of his lips. "Do we have a deal?"

The room fell silent with the exception of the constant _flick_ and _clink_ from his Zippo. And it felt like it was hours before he finally gave his answer.

But it was one she was hoping for.

"Yeah," _Clink_. "Yeah, we have a deal."

* * *

It's taken me some time to decide on when it'll be that Trinity and John will cross paths with the Winchester brothers, but I've finally decided. It'll be episode five, _Live Free or TwiHard_. That'll be where the four of them will come face to face wih each other. (And, oh _crap_ - writing a Soulless!Sam is going to be _hard_ to do. D: I've already went through a good chunk of paper trying to practice writing his soulless character... *_sighs_* But whatever. It'll be a challenge that I'll do my best to defeat!) And... wait. That also means that the two will [most likely] get to meet Samuel Campbell. Or I think they will? … Samuel Campbell _is_ in that episode, right? It's been a long while since I've seen it. But I suppose this gives me a valid excuse to buy the sixth season, right? ;) Why yes, of course it does.

Again, I apologize for the shortness and for how boring it is – but, guess what? The next chapter is when the real fun begins (finally)! (And I'm sorry but unfortunately it is not _Live Free or TwiHard_. We won't be getting to that until after a few chapters.) But I can tell you this: one of the characters from _Supernatural_ will make a brief appearance. Anyone want to guess which character it'll be that Trinity will cross paths with? I'll give you two hints: they're a supernatural being and their name has not been mentioned in the previous chapters.

And I also apologize for how many "_flick_"s and "_clink_"s there are. I think it's because I rather like the sound and... I don't know. In the second movie, John seemed to be do that a lot (like at Bobby Drake's house). I'll be doing my best to tone it down a bit from here on out; although, there may be some cases where I can't help myself. But really, why do I like the _flick_, _clink_ sound...?

Oh yeah. Day after tomorrow is the day _the Avengers_ comes out. Any of you guys excited? I know I am. :) Even though I wish _X-Men_ was involved, specifically John Allerdyce. Oh well. I'm still excited about it.

WoW: Haha, no worries. I'm glad to hear that you liked the chapter despite how short it was. It's funny, ya'know? These chapters are short but once we get further in the story they gradually get longer. And yes, I agree; I'm really, really happy that they finally decided when it is John's pulled from! It was hard not knowing a hundred percent, but now? So much better that it's been decided on. Anyway, I'm glad to hear that you are still enjoying the story. :)

KoK: You've got that right. They two will need to learn to get along and start working together. Methinks Pyro will have to put his prejudice aside and work with her if he ever wants to get back to his world (even though it is Trinity's fault that he's in this mess to begin with, haha). =) And agreed. I don't think shapeshifters would be able to mimic John. He's one of a kind, that one. But that's good for Trinity because then she won't have to try and be sneaky when she wants to make sure it's him. All she'll need to do is ask him to set something on fire that's a good distance away.

Jessica M. Winchester: Thank you for the review. As for your request I'll think about it. _Let It Bleed_ is an episode I'm not a hundred percent sure if I'll have the two partake in. And it may be awhile before I fully decide if it'll get the green or red light. But do know that I'll be thinking about it and see what my plot bunnies will do. Who knows? They may go for it. :) As to your second the answer is without a doubt very likely. Except I'm not sure if it'll be a sequel or if it'll all be in _Clockwise Reversal_. I guess it really depends on how long/many chapters this thing gets to before we reach the end. If the chapters are over 50+ then yeah, there'll be a sequel to this ficlet.


	6. Part of the Hunt

Clockwise Reversal  
_Part of the Hunt_

* * *

If he had known this is what came with the compromise he _never_ would have agreed.

The pair had arrived in town a few days ago when learning about the "mysterious killings" occurring; although, how she was able to figure out what was the supernatural and what was simply a serial killer on the loose was beyond him. And he never paid any mind to how she was able to gather the pieces of the puzzle; he only knew the end result which was her informing him what it was and, sometimes, asking if he'd help her. And when they made this compromise he had come to conclusion that it'd still be the same.

Oh, if only he had known.

_Flick_.

This was torture.

That's what this was.

_Clink_.

Beside him, Trinity's face was one of sympathy as the young woman seated across them composed herself; her boyfriend of four years had been the third victim.

If he knew that she would be dragging him through everything– the investigation, the interviews, _everything_ – he would never have agreed in the first place.

Why couldn't he just wait at the motel until the very last step?

_Flick_.

"I… it's just I… I c-can't believe that's he's _gone_." Natalie – that was the young woman's name – quickly tried to swipe the tears away and sucked in a deep breath. "Kyle's a… Kyle was such a great and wonderful person. Always he was willing to help others,"—here Pyro rolled his eyes—"no matter what. Why? W-Why would anyone want to hurt him? Why?"

"I don't know."

_Clink_.

Of course she wouldn't know, would she? All she did know was how to kill these unholy creatures and whatnot.

_Flick_.

"I mean, it's not like he had any enemies… right?"

Natalie shook her head vigorously. "Not that I k-know of."

_Clink_.

Not that she knew of? And they'd been dating for how many years now?

_Flick_.

When will this torture end?

Wait.

… Would it _ever_ end?

_Clink_.

"Did you notice any change in his behavior a few days prior to the… the day of his death?"

Simultaneously, they both winced as the woman broke into a new set of tears. And Pyro made sure that his companion could feel his heated glare burning through her. In return, she gave an – inconspicuous – apologetic gesture with her left hand before trying to comfort the crying female.

_Flick_.

Damn.

How much longer did he have to suffer through this?

_Clink_.

"I'm sorry, Natalie."

Pyro again rolled his eyes. Was she really?

Natalie sniffed.

_Flick_.

And her swollen, red eyes made contact with his brown.

"So… you a-and Kyle were friends?"

_Clink_.

This was the stupidest thing he's been forced to do at this point in his life. Trinity had the "smart" idea that they'd introduce themselves to Natalie as being friends of his back in college. Seriously, that was the best she could come up with? Whatever, it wasn't like it mattered. After all, the girlfriend actually fell for it.

"It's pretty obvious that we never really kept in touch, but yeah. We've been friends since sophomore year."

She tried to summon a laugh. "Yeah, obviously…"

_Flick_.

"… How long have you been smoking for?"

Pyro's eyes snapped back to hers.

_Clink_.

"John doesn't smoke."

His jaw clenched at the sound of his name.

_Flick_.

"Oh." Natalie was thoroughly confused. But a second later, she gave a small smile. "That's good. I'm sure if Kyle w-was here then he'd be glad to hear that. He's… he was against smoking and illegal use of drugs and—"

He tried not to roll his eyes for the third time.

All he knew was that this little "social time" they were having better end soon. Like, now soon. Because he honestly didn't know how much longer he could put up with this crap.

_Clink_.

* * *

It wasn't until after they got back to their room that Pyro said, "What kind of bullshit was that?"

_Flick_.

She briefly debated on whether to play dumb or not until her eyes locked on the flame from his Zippo. "You mean having to lie about being the dead guy's friend?"

The look he gave her told her that it was only half of it.

"It's one way of finding out how the victim behaved during his last few days. If, let's say, she told us that he kept claiming that he heard growling and seeing dogs that no one else saw then that meant he made a deal ten years ago. But since it seems that nothing was out of the ordinary with him before his death then that rules the hellhounds out. Besides, I find it easier acting like the deceased's friend rather than a federal agent."

_Clink_.

"You impersonate as an F.B.I. agent?"

"Rarely," She never was that good at playing that role. "And yes, some hunters tend to take that approach, especially if they need to examine the body."

"And remind me again why _I_ had to go with you."

"It's part of our compromise. Remember?"

_Flick_.

"I don't remember anything about having to do that bullshit with you."

"It's part of the hunt, Pyro."

The mutant opened his mouth to retort when, angrily, he realized that… she was right. To her, the hunt included _everything_ while he was only thinking about the end result where it involved actually hunting the thing down and frying it. … Damn it.

_Clink_.

The remainder of the evening was quiet with the exception of the _flicks_ and _clinks_ coming from John's Zippo and the _clicks _from the keyboard whenever Trinity typed. At first she tried checking the recent news to get more information about the attacks and came to the idea that it could be a werewolf. Yet further research told her that it wasn't a werewolf (then again, she should've known due to the cycle of the moon and all). Perhaps this wasn't a case. Maybe there was just some rabid dog on the loose?

But no, that didn't make sense. Some of these poor saps hadn't had their stomachs clawed and ripped apart. Could it be another ghoul? If that was the creature they were after then she knew John would be "oh-so thrilled" about that, especially because of last time.

Not surprising that a headache was already starting to form just from the thought.

"Pyro, I'm going out for awhile."

_Flick_.

"The bar again, right." It definitely didn't come out as a question. "If your kidneys and liver aren't messed up by now you know they soon will be."

_Why, John, I had no idea that you cared_. Instead she settled with, "I'll be back soon."

He did an eye roll. Yeah, it's not like he hasn't heard that one before.

_Clink_.

* * *

There was something off about that guy.

And it certainly wasn't her being paranoid.

… Well. Scratch that. Some (if not most) of it was due to paranoia, but there was just something about him that gave her a bad feeling. Maybe it was the staring or how he made sure to stay within the shadows of the bar. Didn't most creepers do that kind of stuff? It didn't necessarily mean that the man was some type of supernatural creature.

Right…?

An hour passed and _still_ the creep made a point to stare at her every few minutes.

Seriously, what was up with this guy? Did she remind him of someone? She tried to think back. Maybe Sam and Dean (and her, perhaps) helped him out with a ghost problem or something along those lines? That could be a possibility. It wasn't like she remembered every single person they helped. And she was fairly sure that the same could be said for Sam and Dean.

Unless the person was of the opposite sex and had a pretty face.

Then she was fairly certain that they'd remember her.

_Dude, what is your problem?_ Her mind practically screamed the question, but it wasn't like he was going to answer. Unless he was psychic then perhaps he could.

… Right now, she was going to be a total girl about this and call Pyro to come down and escort her back. But screw it. It was better to be safe than sorry. Rising from her spot at the bar, after paying for her drinks, she made a beeline to the hallway where the restrooms where.

She didn't even give him a chance to say anything, "Pyro, I need you to get down here. And by that I mean you need to get here now. There's this guy who keeps staring at me and I'm starting to think that he's not as normal as he appears; he could be our guy that's been causing these events!"

There was a long, unneeded pause. In the background, she heard the familiar _flick_ and _clink_ of his lighter.

"… _Fine_," He breathed out before the familiar buzzing rang in her ear to signal the person on the other end had hanged up.

Quickly, she stuffed the cell phone inside her jacket pocket before walking back into the main room and trying to see where that guy was. He wasn't in the same spot that he'd been lounging about previously and part of her began to worry that maybe he left. _Damn it_. If he did leave then that meant they lost a perfect opportunity in stopping him. That and also because John was already on his way. Maybe there was a chance she could still catch up to him?

… _It's worth a shot._

The streets were clear with only a few clumps of people strolling along the sidewalk. And so far there didn't appear to be any sign of her target. _Which direction could he have gone in?_ Was there any point in trying to track him down?

"Lost there, darling?"

She spun around to come face to face with him. In the middle of the alleyway, there stood the male that kept staring at her in the bar. He was casually leaning against the brick wall of the building and giving her an amused look.

"Who are you? _What_ are you?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

Her eyes narrowed. The falsely, sweet look of innocence he was giving her failed to make her believe that he had no clue what it was she was talking about. Did he really think she'd fall for that? _Pfft, nice try._ "I think you _know_ what I mean."

"Do I?"

"Yeah, yeah I think you do."

He shook his head, a light chuckle sounding from his throat. "If you think that I'm the one who's been causing these sudden, gruesome deaths, darling, I'll have you know now that… I'm not responsible. I'm not the one you should be after." She was about to ask him who or what it was that she was after, but already he was answering her unspoken question. "No, you see. What you're looking for is a very sadistic…"

"…"

She was looking for a sadistic… what?

"That's just it. You have to figure out what it is. I can't just spoil all the fun for you, now can I?"

"If you can't tell me what it is that's doing these killings then how about you tell me who and what you are?"

"Where would the fun in that be?" Good Lord, this guy was way too smug for his own good. How his grin hadn't split his face in two yet she may never know. Apparently, she was too lost in thought because she hadn't notice how he was walking – backwards – further into the alley. "But if it helps any, darling," His expression was somewhat smug as he came to a halt in his retreat.

"The name's Balthazar."

And, in the blink of an eye, he was gone.

* * *

Yep. I just had to bring Balthazar in. Why? That's easy. It's because he's one of my favorites. :D

Originally, I wasn't going to have him appear until _the French Mistake_. But then my plot bunnies came up with the idea of having them meet before _the French Mistake_. And I'm toying with the idea of having him show up more to mess with Trinity's mind and (maybe?) be their very own Castiel [in some ways]. So that's where you, dear reader, come in. Located on my profile, you'll find that there's a poll asking: _Should Balthazar be a recurring character throughout "Clockwise Reversal"?_ So please, feel free to drop by real quick and vote for one of the three options. Thanks. :)

And I was not going to split this into two parts but I liked how Balthazar made his entrance and exit. So… yeah, that's why we ended were we did. :)

Anyway, there's not much else to report really… I am obsessing over _The Lost Boys_ right now, but I doubt I'll ever write anything for it at this point. And I also still have two and a half more weeks left of school before my summer starts which is a complete bummer. I'm ready for my vacation now, darn it! *_sighs_* Oh well, what can I say? It's Life. Hopefully, you guys are no longer in school and, if so, I hope your summer is starting off to being a good one. :D But if you still have to deal with school like me then, well, I'm sorry. :( But hopefully you'll be out soon. :)

Oh! And I went and saw _the Avengers_ and I only have one word to describe it: EPIC. The action, the comedy, everything – it was just pure_ awesome_; although I felt bad for Loki, especially when [Beware: SPOILER ALERT] Hulk smashed him around. And the few people that were there laughed. Seriously, I was the only one who made this strangled weird sob sound. TT^TT Even my mother laughed when Hulk was smashing poor Loki. [END RANT/SPOILER]

But anyway, who else has seen the movie? And what did you think of it?

VeelaSophia: Glad to hear it! :) Yeah, I really wish I could plow through it and have (Soulless!)Sam and Dean show up, but then we wouldn't really get to see how Trinity and John's strange relationship develops. And yes, next chapter involves the fun part of the hunt and not just the boring part where they need to talk to a person and/or people. And thanks, I'm glad to hear that the _flicks_ and _clinks_ aren't annoying. :) Thanks again for the review. =)

WoW: At this point in time I don't think we'll be seeing Trinity and John pretending they're FBI Agents for awhile. But otherwise we get to see how well John does with interacting with the victims' friends and/or family. And so far it looks like he isn't thrilled. ;) But who knows? That could change overtime (or not, haha). As for Trinity, yes, it does seem like she has a bit too much on her plate. But if you think about it it's (kind of) her fault, so… yeah. Hopefully she'll be able to make it through. :)


End file.
